Voorhees Mall

Statue of Prince William the Silent on the Voorhees Mall

Voorhees Mall is a grassy area of about 28 acres (0.1 km²), adjacent to the Old Queen's campus located on the College Avenue Campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey (USA). An eclectic mix of architectural styles, the Voorhees Mall possesses many of the older and historic academic buildings at Rutgers. At the mall's western end is the campus of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary whose history is intertwined with the early history of Rutgers University. The mall is bounded by Hamilton Street (on the east), George Street (north), College Avenue (south) and Seminary Place (west) in downtown New Brunswick.

The Voorhees Mall was originally deeded to Rutgers College by James Nielson, a 19th century New Brunswick merchant. However, after several generous donations to Rutgers, including the first building dedicated to housing the institution's library (now known as Voorhees Hall), this grassy mall was named for Ralph and Elizabeth Rodman Voorhees.

The Voorhees Mall is the site of the Commencement exercises for Rutgers College, the oldest of the constituent residential colleges at Rutgers University. It has also been the site of numerous college protests, including most recently the annual Tent State student protests against state budget cuts which adversely effect the University.

Buildings

Riverstede (1868)

Professor George C. Cook (for whom Cook College is named) erected this Italianate-Victorian brownstone which he named Riverstede as his home in 1868. It later was the home of William Henry Steele Demarest (1863-1956), eleventh President of Rutgers University (from 1906 to 1924), during his tenure as President of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary from 1924 to 1934. Since this time is has often been called Demarest House. Today, Riverstede houses the Student Information Assistance Center, however, previously it was home to the Raritan Club, the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, the Partisan Review, a female graduate student residence, the Rutgers Religious Ministry and the Office of Career Services.

New Jersey Hall (1889)

New Jersey Hall was built from funds authorized by the New Jersey state legislature to construct an "Agricultural Hall" to house the State Experiment Station (now part of Cook College). It initially housed the college's departments of Chemistry and Biology. Today, New Jersey Hall houses the university's Department of Economics.

Recent efforts have been made to rename New Jersey Hall in honor of Nobel laureate Milton Friedman who graduated from Rutgers College with a Bachelor of Arts (A.B.) in 1932.

Voorhees Hall (1903)

Originally built to house the Rutgers College library, this building is named for Ralph and Elizabeth Rodman Voorhees. It later hosted the University Art Gallery which became the Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum in 1983. Today it houses the university's Department of Art History and the Art History Library which was expanded into an addition to Voorhees Hall in 2002.

Murray Hall (1909)

Originally built to house the College of Engineering, Murray Hall was designed by alumnus Douwe D. Williamson (Rutgers College Class of 1870) and Frederick P. Hill (Rutgers College Class of 1883). Built partly with a gift from steel magnate and industrialist Andrew Carnegie, Murray Hall was named for David Murray, professor of mathematics and astronomy at Rutgers College and college trustee. Murray assisted George Cook in establishing the Rutgers Scientific School (now part of Cook College) and in getting Rutgers named a land-grant college under the Morrill Act of 1862. Today, Murray Hall houses classrooms and the university's Department of English.

Milledoler Hall (1910)

Originally called the Chemistry Building, Milledoler Hall is named for Reverend Philip Milledoler ((1775–1852), professor of didactic theology in the New Brunswick Theological Seminary, trustee of Queen's College, and fifth President of Rutgers College from 1825-1840. Currently, this building houses several administrative offices for Rutgers College, including the Office of the Dean.

Van Dyck Hall

Today, Van Dyck Hall houses classrooms and the university's Department of History.

Ford Hall

Today, Ford Hall is a graduate student dormitory. It is named for John U. Ford, a trustee of the university and former entrepreneur in the rubber industry.

Scott Hall

Named for Austin Scott (1848–1922), the tenth President of Rutgers University, Scott Hall is a modern structure.

William the Silent

Fenton B. Turck, a New York physician and biologist, with the assistance of railroad magnate, and longtime Rutgers alumnus and trustee Leonor F. Loree (Rutgers College Class of 1877), anonymously donated a statute of Prince William the Silent (1533-1584) of the House of Nassau and later Prince of Orange, who was the leader of the Dutch rebellion against the Spanish that set off the Eighty Years' War and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. Turck, of Dutch extraction, intended to give the statue to the University to signify the institution's Dutch roots. He kept the statute in the basement of his laboratory in Manhattan for eight years before it was unveiled on the present Voorhees Mall on 9 June 1928. According to student tradition, the statute is said to whistle when a virgin passes by. To date the statue has remained slient. This statute is a rough replica of a similar monument that stands in The Hague.

External links

• Rutgers University